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Endurance Coach

Monday, January 11, 2010

Hill Repeats and "High Arms"

I managed to do 12 x 1:00 hill repeats at 5km effort tonight (thank you lungs!). It was dark, and I couldn't see my watch, so I counted 90 right foot strikes to estimate a minute and marked how far I got with each repeat. Obviously my goals were uphill strength building and downhill strength building. But, I also concentrated on form.
I found that when I used Bobby McGee's advice for "high arms" and a small elbow angle, that I traveled significantly farther with my 90 strides. The idea is that high arms and bent elbow result in a smaller pendulum. Smaller pendulum means that the runner can increase his/her cadence. Big bonus points if you direct your hands straight forward and backward, rather than crossing toward your midline.
It was simple and it seemed to make an immediate, painless difference. It will be my focus until I turn it into habit.
Then, I'll start tackling my forward lean...

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About Me

Chris is a USAT Elite Level III Coach, a USAT Youth and Junior Coach and a USAC Level II Coach. Chris combines 32 years of competitive endurance sports and 17 years of coaching experience to build effective, motivating training for her athletes. As an athlete, she has numerous top three finishes at regional and national levels in many sports including triathlon, collegiate rowing, canoe/kayak, cross country skiing, running and road bike racing. She is a twelve time Ironman finisher and a 2011 USAT Team USA ITU Long Course World Championships participant. As a coach, she has coached athletes to success at the regional, national and world level. She is the Head Coach for the National Champion MMTT Youth Development Triathlon Team. She has been an assistant coach for a Challenged Athletes Foundation para-triathlon camp and an assistant coach at the Olympic Training Center for a High Performance Para-triathlon Camp. Chris is married with two kids. Her coaching philosophy is based on trust, communication, balance, efficient training plans and long-term enjoyment of training and racing.